Department of Urban and Regional Planning and Geo-Information Management

Capacity development

The contribution of the department of Urban and Regional Planning and Geo-Information Management to capacity development is achieved through an integrated approach to research, education, project services and information dissemination; it focuses on geo-information management for multi-level governance of urban regions.

Capacity development comprises three interrelated activities, closely related to the requirements of the deparment's client organisations:

Human resources development

Three types of professionals are targeted:

• specialists in relevant thematic areas
• managers of business processes in organisations
• Senior managers involved in strategic decision making

Organisation strengthening

Strengthening the management capacity of organisations in terms of planning and decision making, using information and communication technology (ICT), to improve organisation's performances

Institutional strengthening

Enhancing the capacity of organisations in negotiating appropriate mandates, legal frameworks and modus operandi to effectively act towards the achievement of higher civil society goals related to poverty alleviation, environment protection and socio-economic development in urbanising regions

The department is not only committed to contributing to capacity development but also to measuring the impact of its interventions, making use of qualitative and quantitative capacity development indicators (e.g. using the "UNDP indicator framework").